Activity 4: WIT Time - Favorite Sources

Materials for Activity

Preparation for Activity

Copy Handout 2 for all participants.

Be ready to provide specific examples of wisdom Unitarian Universalists draw from specific UU Sources and examples of how your congregation's worship services and other practices draw from the wisdom of specific Sources.

Description of Activity

Participants name people in their lives and identify UU Sources that do or can help them know what to believe.

Distribute the handouts and pencils/pens. Tell them the handout is a worksheet to help them identify Sources they trust and use as they develop their beliefs. Say they need not put their names on the handouts; these are worksheets for their own use. You will discuss the pages together, but they need share only what they wish to.

Review the instructions with the group; make sure youth understand what to do. Point out that the entries in the first list refer to people and experiences in their lives. The second list describes our UU Sources. Give youth four or five minutes to work on the handouts.

Invite volunteers to identify the five-star item on their first list. What other items on the first list had high marks? Invite comments on their lists and rankings. Who else did they add to the list?

Now turn to the second list. Ask volunteers to share their rankings. It may be helpful to solicit and provide examples of where specific Sources wisdom appears in your congregational life.

Tell the group you hope they will continue to think about who and what they trust most to assist them as they develop their belief systems in the days and years ahead. Say that their sources, as well as their beliefs, are likely to change as time goes by, and that is fine.

Say in your own words:

Most Unitarian Universalists actively engage in a search for answers to life's big questions, not every day but from time to time throughout their lives. We find this search rewarding and encourage one another in their searching, too. We believe it is natural and good for many of our ideas and beliefs to change from time to time.

Including All Participants

If you have participants with limited reading skills, consider reading through the handout with the whole group. Then assist individuals as needed.